Marvel continues to evolve plans for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and the TV show Moon Knight has now been cancelled.
Marvel Studios is in the middle of a pivot for its ongoing Marvel Cinematic Universe, and while subtly changing the direction of something so large and lumbering takes time, there are occasional markers laid down that give us a clear sense of where things are heading.
One such marker is today’s announcement from Marvel Television executive Brad Winderbaum, stating that Moon Knight won’t be getting a second season.
Prior to the release of WandaVision in 2021, Marvel television was ostensibly part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe but any links to the wider series of films were usually pretty spurious. Programmes like Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Netflix shows such as Daredevil and Jessica Jones rarely featured much in the way of tie-in material apart from the odd reference to events in the films, and the movies themselves never acknowledged the existence of their small screen counterparts.
With WandaVision, all of that changed and Marvel Studios tried to expand its connective storytelling into television. To fully understand the narrative setups for some of its films, audiences would be required to watch a range of TV shows.
The recent underwhelming box office performance of Captain America: Brave New World – one several recent disappointments for the studio – suggests that this approach has largely been a misfire, as audiences tire of having to do so much ‘homework’ to feel that they are fully appreciating what’s going on in any given film.
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On this topic, Brad Winderbaum has confirmed to Comicbook.com that Marvel’s television strategy has once again shifted. Furthermore, it sounds as though Moon Knight is a victim of the studio’s new direction: “So I think Marvel Television has happened in waves, and I think Moon Knight happened in a wave of shows that were going to establish characters that would tie in to the future. And moving forward, our priorities have shifted. We’re making shows as shows that can exist as annual releases, more like television.”
That certainly seems to be the approach with Marvel’s upcoming Daredevil show – which was reportedly almost completely reshot to make it feel more like a standalone television show, instead of just another MCU tie-in. Despite receiving some warm reviews, Oscar Isaac’s turn as Moon Knight always felt like a TV origin story designed to pre-empt his appearance in some kind of team-up movie and that is a strategy that Marvel is clearly no longer keen to pursue.
2025 promises to be a watershed moment for Marvel Studios as it tries to galvanise audiences once more ahead of its big upcoming Avengers movies in the next couple of years. Things haven’t started too well with Captain America: Brave New World but with Fantastic Four up next, the studio has another opportunity to bring fans back on board.
As for Moon Knight though, the character will likely only be contributing as an ensemble player in one way or another. If at all.
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